I have lots of petunias and trumpet shaped flowers, bee balm, etc...just lots of hummingbird attractions, along with a few feeders. We've only seen 1 hummer this year. There are lots of other birds being fed in my small yard too. Does that have something to do with the lack of hummers?
I keep the sweet red water fresh too.
any suggestions?
Lots of hummer flowers blooming but only 1 hummer around
I don't add coloring to the homemade nectar in my feeders, and have had a steady run of hummers. Not many, but pretty consistent. I do see (and hear) them more at the trumpet-shaped flowers than usually, but that may be just because I now have more flowers they like.
I think that if you provide a good habitat they will eventually come to it. That was my experience. I have two large red strawberry feeders that I try to keep fresh juice in, changing it about once a week. The first few years there were no hummers and almost no flowers, but things have improved since I have a little oasis in the desert now. I wonder if the babies come back to where they were raised and raise their families? Does anybody know?
I was getting discouraged that no hummers where coming to my feeders and flowers, but I just think I wasn't looking when they came as I see a female at the flowers about twice a day now. She comes to my picture window and peeks in. I don't know what that is about but last year there was a feeder there so I wonder if it is the same bird. I planted a hummingbird garden but the plants are young and are late this year. My butterfly bushes haven't bloomed yet. I read you don't need to have the water colored. My recipe is 1 cup water to 1/4 cup sugar, boil to dissolve sugar. Then I put a red christmas bow on the feeder.
I didn't have many hummers at my feeders until about a week ago. All of a sudden, we have lots! It looks like many of the ones that I am seeing are immature males. And they are very curious and unafraid of my husband and me. Usually, we have to sit outside and allow the hummers to grow accustomed to us. But the ones that we have now seem to follow me around in the yard - -buzzing my head and resting close to where I am working.
I think you might get more in TN than here in Western NY. My sister lives in AR (the Ozarks) and she gets loads of them.
Trillium girl, It seems that the more feeders that I put out - the more hummers I have. But we never have many until mid to late summer. I also plant a lot of the flowers that attact them - - but I think that when they start to "bulk up" for their fall migration, they really concentrate on the feeders.
I also put decorative plant stakes in my containers - - which the hummers love to use as resting posts. Since I started using the stakes, I have more hummers that just hang out on my porch. See photo from last yearhttp://davesgarden.com/t/375629/immature+male Nat